Chris Romer‚Äôs repeated criticism of Michael Hancock‚Äôs vote on pay raises for elected officials struggled for traction at last night‚Äôs debate before a crowd of Republicans and conservatives.

Conversations and interviews with event organizers and attendees suggest Romer‚Äôs pay-raise complaint fell flat ‚Äď and risked hurting his credibility with the crowd.

As The Post‚Äôs Anthony Cotton reports today:

A largely civil discourse on issues such as medical marijuana and attracting business to Denver turned sharply Wednesday night when mayoral candidates Chris Romer and Michael Hancock traded barbs regarding their campaign strategies.

The exchanges during the debate, sponsored by Denver County Republicans at West High School, were set against the backdrop of events earlier in the day: The Romer campaign released a commercial criticizing Hancock for being part of a City Council that voted Denver’s next mayor and council, among others, a pay raise in the face of the city’s looming $100 million budget deficit. About the same time, Hancock was receiving an endorsement from six members of the council.

Romer criticized the pay raises several times Wednesday night. After he did so, Hancock explained the requirement the council is under to set salaries according to a predetermined time table.

When Romer then continued to criticize the raises as ‚Äúpolitics as usual,‚ÄĚ several crowd members groaned and made catcalls.

‚ÄúIf you really research it and look at the pay-raise thing, (Hancock) didn‚Äôt benefit from that personally,‚ÄĚ said Danny Stroud, chairman of the Denver Republicans.

The chairman stressed he was neutral in the race and that his remarks were meant to summarize the views of several attendees he talked to after the debate.

‚ÄúIt‚Äôs not like (Hancock) was doing it for self-aggrandizement,‚ÄĚ Stroud said. ‚ÄúThat Romer kept hammering on it was annoying to a lot of people.”

The debate ‚Äď pitched as an historic first for the Denver County Republicans ‚Äď was co-sponsored by the Liberty Movement‚Äôs R Block Party.

(Your Lookout Colorado correspondent played the role of master of ceremonies at the event, but The Post was not involved in sponsoring the event.)

‚ÄúOnce (Hancock) finally took the time to explain what the procedure was, and once he explained it was mandated that they had to address the issue and that it was for people in those positions in the future, for Romer to go back to it and say it again ‚Ä¶ it wasn‚Äôt reasonable,‚ÄĚ Mata said.

Mata said during a post-debate gathering Republicans criticized Romer for over-using that talking point.

‚ÄúOne of the big things in the Liberty Movement or Tea Party Movement is trying to get rid of the BS factor in so many politicians,‚ÄĚ Mata said. ‚ÄúWhen someone keeps going over and over (a talking point), they say it because they think it will play to the crowd and not because of what they think as a person or a legislator or as a politician.‚ÄĚ

(Romer‚Äôs critique also includes references to pay raises for city workers. This post isn‚Äôt meant to investigate or unpack the overall critique. Stay tuned to The Post for a Fact Checker look at the claims.)

Beyond the pay raise flap, Romer had better luck with the crowd.

Harris Kenny, a Denver-based Reason Foundation policy analyst who attended the event, said he viewed the debate as close. Kenny argued that Romer stood out on several policy specifics and managed to conclude with a positive tone.

‚ÄúFrom an audience member perspective, it was kind of interesting seeing the Republicans turn on (Romer) when he talked about how he didn‚Äôt want to engage in the politics of personal destruction,‚ÄĚ Kenny said.

The debate did not end on a positive note at all. It wrapped up a personal diatribe against Hancock. An informal straw poll at the end showed Hancock winning by a landslide! One person raised their hand in support of Romer out of an audience of over 100.

TAX THE RICH NOW!! COME PEOPLE OF COLORADO, WE DON’T HAVE TO TAKE THIS ANYMORE OUR GOVERMENT¬†IS BEING TAKEN OVER BY THE TEA PARTY & THEY ARE ONLY 37 PERCENT. WE HAVE TO STOP THE TEA PARTY & TAX THE RICH NOW. WE CAN NOT PAY ANYMORE!! IT IS THERE TURN TO PAY LET’S PROTEST!! GET OFF YOUR BUTTS & STOP THE TEA PARTY & TAX THE RICH NOW!! SEE YOU AT THE CAPITAL!!!!

Chuck is The Denver Post's political investigative reporter. He has been a professional journalist for more than 15 years, several of them doing investigative reporting. He covered Denver's preparation for the Democratic National Convention as the paper's lead convention writer and also covered the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. He most recently served on The Post's editorial board.